Kurushimi no Kurashi: Horosha to Wakamono
by MHYami003
Summary: A Yami no Matsuei AU; Hisoka is the last member left of his respectable clan and is expected to destroy a powerful demon. Could this strange man be the demon? Ninja-samurai fic, set in no specific era.


MorningStar: So, after God knows how many months we finally got this thing off the ground! We originally had it as an RPG, but it didn't work out that way. So now that we have it as an actual fic, maybe it will move along faster! I have two pages of notes that will transfer into about eight or nine pages of text :D I love my notes, only I can decipher them! Yay, for and Holli's first fic together! That's about it! DAMN MURAKI!!!  
  
Holli: So, no decent Japanese-English dictionary exists on the web! I wish to burn things. Many things. Whheeeeeee...I hope to go home and use my REAL dictionary that is in book form...it's so mucher nicer. Yay.  
  
So, this is an interesting story. It's an AU where everyone is either ninja/samurai, set in no specific Japanese era. We spoofed so many ninja/samurai anime/manga already with this story, but it's very, very vague spoofing (spoofing Naruto, Rurouni Kenshin, Ninja Scroll, etc.) But hey, you may pick up on it.  
  
You'll have to enjoy the pics I made for this not-existing-quite-yet-fic. LOL  
  
Kurushimi no Kurashi: Horosha to Wakamono  
  
[Life of Sorrow: The Youth and the Wanderer]  
  
**********  
  
An Alternate Universe Yami no Matsuei story  
  
**********  
  
Chapter One: A Walk Down the Road  
  
Written by Holli and MorningStar. Editing by MorningStar and Holli.  
  
(WARNINGS: PG, for now...expect to change! We think it is in character, but the story is completely AU; Tsuzuki x Hisoka)  
  
**********  
  
The slightest of breezes rustled through the red leaves of fall that hadn't quite left the trees. A youth, with his kimono top only half on, could be seen out in the wood...but by himself. Oddly enough, the exposure of skin was one of the few things that made it apparent that the youth was even male for that matter . . . his wheat hair was unbelievably long, and pulled up tight in a ponytail behind him. If his hair was down, there was no doubt it would reach past his back. The baggy pants he wore did little to hide his thin legs, but he was hardly one to disappear in the wind.  
  
He stared intently at the target in front of him. His name was Hisoka . . . and he has started practicing, knowing that the elders would eventually call on him, to tell him about a recent threat to his village.  
  
He tensed his back leg muscles, knowing that if anyone was watching him, they wouldn't be able to tell that he had moved anything at all; that was part of the reason he wore clothes that hung so loosely on his body. Surprisingly, this loose outfit only added to his attractiveness, as it swung, barely tied onto his body. In one effortless motion he uncoiled those same muscles and sprang forward with amazing speed. He brought forth his sword and passed the target, sheathing it as he turned around. The practice dummy's head rolled back and fell to the ground. He walked forward and examined the wood; it had been a clean cut. He walked away from the field where the dummies stood, pulling his kimono back on completely, acknowledging no one as he passed. His face was not one of anger . . . just calm concentration.  
  
The youth went into one of the buildings and sat down, his swords resting at his side. He crossed his legs and placed his hands, palms up, on his knees, letting his body settle as he breathed deeply. He took a few more deep breaths and started meditating, blocking everyone's emotions from his mind.  
  
**********  
  
Outside, a young man, about twenty-six, walked down the beaten path that ran through Hisoka's village. He appeared tired, and his clothes haggard, but at the oddest of times, he had the goofiest look on his face as he walked down the road.  
  
The sugar stars he snacked on added to his childish gestures as he walked. He wore clothes of the barest essential...pants just past his knees, plain sandles, and a kimono top halfway loosely tied, with the sleeves ripped off. His pants were also similarly ripped, and while his clothes were well made, they showed their wear and tear. A small short sword was tucked in his obi, but no other weapon on his person was seen, except for what appeared as even girlish looking hair sticks that kept his just shoulder length hair tied back in a ponytail. His bangs were long and wild, parted down the middle, a dark brown, and his hair just reached past his shoulders.  
  
But most noticeable was the color of his eyes. They were of a demon it seemed, an unnatural purple seen in no other person.  
  
He wore a straw hat, as he calmly walked unfazed across a bridge, his meager supplies on his back. But, he did have a small smile of enjoyment across his face. He walked past the dojo where he was unaware of the youth meditating. He sat behind the dojo under a willow tree, and settled for a nap.  
  
**********  
  
Hisoka opened his eyes as he was hit with a powerful wave of depression and nervousness, coming from outside. He realized that the emotions were coming from a man who was walking in front of the dojo. Hisoka couldn't understand why he couldn't block this man's emotions out, no matter how hard he tried. He gracefully unfolded himself and stood up, hooking his swords into his obi as he did. Part of his training had been able to overcome the oppression of other people's emotions, but even now, these were so strong, he felt himself stagger. He flicked his wheat blond hair behind his shoulder, and walked out of the dojo, knowing that he wouldn't be able to continue to meditate while that man was anywhere near.  
  
Hisoka turned to go back to his house, only to run straight into Morioka Hiroshi. The young man fell backwards, landing hard on his ass. He glared up at Hisoka.  
  
"Gomen, Morioka-san," Hisoka's voice was indifferent and distracted; he was still too focused on trying to figure out why he couldn't block out that man's emotions.  
  
Morioka jumped up from the ground and glared down at Hisoka who was a good half head shorter than himself, "Why don't you watch where you're going Kurosaki! Or are you too high class to even pay attention to those around you?!"  
  
The shorter teen glared back up at Morioka, the other boy's anger increasing his own. His emerald eyes flashed dangerously, "That's Kurosaki- SAN to you Morioka, or did you forget that my family is more illustrious than yours? Apparently you haven't, since you have decided to spit it to my face."  
  
Morioka's expression turned dangerous, and his upper lip curled into an evil sneer, "How can your family be more illustrious than mine? Everyone in your family is dead! You are the last one left. You're living off your ancestors' reputation!"  
  
Hisoka's eyes narrowed and he growled, his usual control slipping in the wake of Morioka's jab, "My clan may be decimated but as long as I live, the Kurosaki name will one day be revived!"  
  
Morioka gave a short, condescending laugh as he backed away from Hisoka, "Ha! A weakling like you?" When he was a few feet away from Hisoka, Morioka unsheathed the katana and braced himself, "I bet you couldn't even defeat me!"  
  
Morioka raised his sword and started toward Hisoka. The teen just stood there calmly, watching as his enraged opponent ran towards him. As the sword flashed downward, Hisoka stepped nimbly to one side, and Morioka stumbled forward, and hit his head into a nearby post. The older boy spun around and hacked at Hisoka, who lightly dodged the furious boy's attacks, never even unsheathing his sword. Even though he was calm, and concentrated to not show emotion, even Hisoka smirked to himself as Morioka's futile and clumsy attacks.  
  
Hisoka raised his eyebrow as he calmly ducked beneath another wild swing; he was once more in control, his voice was expressionless, "Is this the best you can do, Morioka?"  
  
Morioka yelled and attacked more wildly than before, "Fight me, damn you! Why won't you draw your sword?!"  
  
"Why would I waste the edge on my blade when I could easily win this without it?" As if to emphasize his point, his hand flashed out and caught Morioka across his forearms with brutalizing force. Morioka's sword clattered to the ground and he stumbled, trying to cradle both his arms at once.  
  
"D-damn you!" Morioka gingerly picked up his sword and sheathed it before turning and running back toward his house. Hisoka watched without any expression on his face.  
  
Hisoka didn't notice the man who stood only a breath away, directly behind him, "Ah, nice job."  
  
"AHH!" Hisoka jumped and whirled around, a dagger seeming to just appear in his right hand. He came face-to-chest with the man he had sensed earlier. Apparently the older man had abandoned his rest, coming from around the willow to see what the source of the noise had been. Hisoka slipped the dagger back into the sleeve of his kimono and eyed the man warily, amazed that he hadn't been able to sense this man's approach at all, even his previously loud emotions were muted, "Arigato, and who are you?"  
  
The man grinned, looking very much like a puppy, "No one. Here ya go," offers some sugar stars from his bag to Hisoka, " But, you are very good. Very admirable."  
  
Hisoka raised his hand and declined the proffered candy. He wasn't about to show that he didn't want the candy because he felt like he was being treated like a kid who had just finished his chores, it being offered in that matter. "No thank you, I don't care much for sweets. What's admirable?" Turned to look after Morioka, "He was an idiot, hardly worth the effort. He's been trying to defeat me for some time now. He never learns. Next time, I just might kill him and save myself some time and future wasted efforts."  
  
The man sighed, "Well...I meant how you spared him. That's what was good."  
  
Hisoka looked back at the man standing in front of him, an eyebrow raised, his voice bored, "I spare him every time. He has attacked me more than I care to count, and every time I refuse to draw against him. He's just an idiot who thinks to make a name for himself by defeating me; his death is not worth the time it would take to clean my sword."  
  
"Oh," looks a little sad, but then flashes a smile, "Well, whatever the reason, it took mercy of some sort."  
  
The older man looked Hisoka right in the eye and continued to smile brightly. Hisoka noticed an attractive glow to his person; his eyes shone an intense shade of violet as he peered at the teen.  
  
The man's emotions became suddenly loud, radiating out from him like a beacon. Hisoka wondered how the man could exude confidence and nervousness at the same time. He was a little freaked out by the man's smile and intense gaze. He noticed how the color of his eyes was such a bizarre shade of violet, something that Hisoka had never seen in a human before. He stared back at the man, unfazed. If this guy was a demon, he would find out soon enough, as most demons tended to reveal themselves rather quickly.  
  
As the man continued to stare at him, unblinking, Hisoka felt a blush creep up his cheeks. He was finding himself strangely attracted to this man, and this was freaking him out even more than the man's smile. Hisoka backed up a step and cleared his throat, "It was nice meeting you . . . No-one."  
  
Hisoka turned to make his escape, not comfortable with the fact that he felt attracted to another man, even if that man WAS beautiful.  
  
The man didn't seem to notice the youth's current situation as he spoke, "I'm sorry you didn't want any of my candy," he smiled and popped a few more into his mouth, as he repositioned his backpack, "Sorry to bother. Bye!"  
  
The man turned and continued down the road.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
**********  
  
YAMI NO MATSUEI, DESCENDANT OF THE DARK, DESCENDANTS OF DARKNESS, and all related ideas and characters © 1996-2004 Yoko Matushita and respective companies. 


End file.
